Chhattisgarh polls: BJP releases manifesto, Amit Shah confident of win

Raipur: The Raman Singh government in Chhattisgarh had made the state “almost free” of Naxalism and developed it as a hub of power and cement production, BJP president Amit Shah said on Saturday.

Targeting the opposition Congress, he said a party that felt Naxalism was a medium for revolution could not do any good for Chhattisgarh. Shah exuded confidence that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) would win this month’s Assembly polls in the state for the fourth straight time. 

Addressing a press conference here after releasing his party’s manifesto ahead of the first phase of polling on November 12, Shah said, “The BJP government under Chief Minister Raman Singh has contained Naxalism and made the state almost free of it.” 

Earlier known as a BIMARU state, Chhattisgarh was now a “power and cement production hub”, he said, and lauded the Raman Singh government for initiating several welfare measures for the state’s prosperity. 

“Taking on the Congress’s propaganda and working tirelessly for the state’s development for the last 15 years is a big challenge. I am confident that the BJP will win a straight fourth term in office,” Shah said. 

The state government had initiated several welfare measures and made the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) scheme corruption-free, he added. 

The 90-member Chhattisgarh Assembly will go to the polls in two phases — on November 12 and 20 — and the results will be announced on December 11.